Rodriguez made catching cool again
Mike Zunino grew up in the southwest corner of Florida, in Cape Coral. That gave him easy access to spring training games of the Red Sox, Twins and Rangers.
There was no question which team Zunino wanted to watch. He attended as many Rangers games as possible to watch his idol: catcher Ivan Rodriguez.
“I wanted to be a catcher even then,” Zunino said. “He was someone I always watched and tried to emulate. He was such a great defender, the best catcher in the game.”
Zunino, the son of former Cal third baseman Greg Zunino, watched and learned. Seattle took him from Florida with the third overall pick in the 2012 draft, and he has grown into the Mariners’ No. 1 catcher.
“He was so good,” Zunino said of Rodriguez. “You could see the impact he had on games. It was impressive.
“When I was little, I was trying to learn everything I could from just watching him. The specifics of his game have had more of an impact recently.”
This is significant of the legacy of Rodriguez, who will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., on Sunday after a 21-season career, 12 with Texas (He won his only World Series title in 2003 during his lone season with the Marlins). He inspired a generation of catchers by bringing energy and enjoyment to the position. Kids who previously had no interest in catching wanted to put on the gear and be like Pudge.
Zunino’s first glove was a Pudge Rodriguez model. Cleveland’s Roberto Perez wouldn’t move from the television if Rodriguez was playing. Teammate Francisco Lindor has become an All-Star shortstop, but he watched a Rodriguez instructional video over and over and over. Kansas City All-Star Salvador Perez constantly seeks out Rodriguez for advice on every aspect of the position.
“When I was growing up, I always said, ‘I want to be just like Ivan Rodriguez,’ ” Perez said. “It motivates you when you see a great catcher like him. You want to be just like that guy.
“It’s an honor to be a catcher from Puerto Rico, because Ivan Rodriguez is from Puerto Rico. He is who I wanted to be.”
Rodriguez hit with authority in his career, winning five Silver Sluggers as the top offensive catcher in his league.
He also made defense cool, particularly when it came to shutting down running games. Rodriguez won 13 Gold Gloves as the top defensive catcher in his league. That sent a message to his young fans.
“Our priority is defense first, just like Pudge,” Perez said. “You’ve got to put a lot of work into it if you want to be behind the plate. It’s not about hitting. It’s about defense. I learned that from him.”
Older catchers found themselves enamored with Rodriguez, too.
Sandy Alomar was a six-time All-Star catcher during a 20year major-league career. Alomar put Rodriguez in the select category that includes his brother Roberto, a Hall of Fame second baseman, and outfielders Ichiro Suzuki and Mike Trout. When they are playing, you have to watch every moment.
“He’s one of those guys who brought excitement to the game,” said Alomar, a coach with Cleveland. “He had all the tools and made it exciting. I didn’t see any catcher who had the ability that he had. He’s pretty much the most exciting catcher I’ve ever seen. He was phenomenal to watch.”
Rodriguez also triggered a renaissance at catcher in his native Puerto Rico.
In 1988, Major League Baseball included Puerto Rican players in the draft. Over the next 10 years, a total of 59 catchers were drafted from there.
At the same time, baseball was becoming less popular on the island, with the closing of academies. From 1998 through 2007, a total of 37 catchers were drafted out of Puerto Rico. The game and the position are becoming more popular again. Rodriguez’s election to the Hall of Fame will help that, said former Giants catcher Bengie Molina, a native of Puerto Rico.
“To see him grow up into a Hall of Famer, that’s amazing,” said Molina, who completed a 13-year big-league career with the Rangers in 2010. “It gives the island a lot of baseball fever, especially for the kids. They get motivated and keep battling to do it.
“We’ve been losing a lot of kids. They don’t want to play baseball, and that’s sad. Now, they can see what Pudge has done.”